Hiring on Autopilot? You’re Just Making Bad Decisions Faster

A position opens up—whether it's due to resignation, termination, or restructuring—and what's the first move?

For most hiring managers, it's to raise a requisition. An automated process kicks in, and recruitment goes into overdrive.

No one wants to lose headcount from the budget, right? So, a requisition is submitted to the ATS, and just like that, the hunt for a replacement begins.

Here’s the problem: this knee-jerk reaction is a mistake.

Stop Filling Voids. Start Filling Needs.

Too many organisations are guilty of the same thing—they rush to fill vacancies without stepping back to evaluate the bigger picture. As a recruiter, you’ve likely been dragged into countless meetings where the only objective is “fill the role ASAP.” No one stops to ask:

• Is this role even necessary anymore?
• Does it align with the current business strategy?

When you automate this process without thinking critically, you're not hiring strategically—you're just checking boxes. That’s how organisations end up bloated with roles that no longer serve a purpose, ultimately leading to disengaged employees and inevitable layoffs.

Speed Isn't Strategy

Automation makes it easy to feel like you're making progress. It’s fast, efficient, and gives a false sense of control. But speed without strategy is a disaster waiting to happen. The more you rush through this process, the more disconnected you become from the actual needs of the business.

Is Your Hiring Aligned with the Market?

Automation is a tool—not a crutch. When hiring decisions are driven by software instead of business realities, it’s easy to fall into the trap of “filling roles for the sake of filling them.” This leads to mismatches between what the company actually needs and who you’re bringing on board.

The result? Poor culture fit, disengaged employees, and a team that’s misaligned with where the business is headed.

Worse, you’re wasting talent—treating candidates as numbers in a system rather than future team members. This approach is failing everyone.

Ask Yourself: Do You Really Need to Backfill?

How often does anyone pause to ask: “Do we really need to backfill this role?”

Not often enough.

Filling headcount just because it’s “in the budget” is short-sighted. The right question is:

• Why does this role exist in the first place?
• Is it still solving a problem, or are we stuck in an old mindset?

When automation takes over, it’s too easy to skip these critical reflections. And this is how companies end up with bloated, misaligned teams, leading to layoffs later down the road. If you don't stop and think at the requisition stage, you're setting yourself up for much bigger problems later.

The Dangerous Disconnect Between HR, TA, and Business Needs

When automation takes over, human judgment gets sidelined. Decisions are driven by internal factors like headcount quotas, rather than what the business actually needs to thrive. HR and TA are removed from the pulse of the organisation, and the result is predictable: misaligned hires, disengaged teams, and future layoffs.

Automation Isn’t a Strategy—It’s a Tool

Automation isn’t going away. But it’s not a substitute for strategic thinking. Great recruiters know the business inside and out. They don’t let systems make decisions for them—they use tools to support their expertise.

Before you rush blindly into automation, ask yourself this

• What does the business actually need?
• Does this role still align with company goals?
• Is there a better way to solve this problem?

Master Your Craft First, Automate Second

Automation should handle the repetitive, time-consuming tasks. But strategic decision-making? That should never be automated. A strong recruiter doesn’t just fill roles; they find talent that aligns with long-term business goals.

Key Takeaway: Automation without strategy is dangerous. Before you automate your requisition process, take the time to really understand your business needs.

Blindly following automation can lead to poor hires and, ultimately, layoffs. Master the craft of recruitment first—then use automation to enhance, not replace, your strategy.

In the next part of this series, we’ll dive into automated screening and how relying on algorithms alone is costing you top talent. Stay tuned.